They say that money changes everything. But can it get you to eat your vegetables and go to the gym?

Research indicates that if you pay yourself per pound lost, you’ll lose more weight than if you do it for free. A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2008 found that financial incentives worked well, but once they end, the benefits tended to diminish. This also doesn’t seem to stray too far from general principles of weight loss – if you go back to your old habits, the weight comes back.

So how do you pay yourself for weight loss? Be creative. Set aside a fund with an amount from each paycheck that you might normally use for fun things – like a new outfit, music downloads or a movie.

Then create a contract with yourself (a significant other can help) that rewards you for meeting small goals. If you continue to set aside money each month, you can keep this going. And if you gain back the weight, you have to make a deposit back into the account.

Get your friends involved or talk to your company’s wellness committee about creating a lottery; a study found that this form of incentive works well, particularly in larger groups. This helps explain why corporate versions of “The Biggest Loser” have cropped up in workplaces everywhere.

In the meantime, you’ll learn to integrate some lifestyle choices that you can maintain after you’ve run out of money to pay yourself.